This is the truth if you have not given a lot of thought to this but IT infrastructures everywhere run the Affordable Care Act and when you make laws that are verbiage only, well there’s much more to be said when you get to the machines for the IT infrastructure that runs it.

I think this should be pretty clear in the minds of all as let’s step back to last year with Healthcare.Gov, what runs it? Code and the machines are the IT infrastructures that run it all, for that portion of the ACA. Do you remember what happens when code isn’t ready or is not done? We all do, glitches and even if you were not a participant there was plenty in the news to read.

You also have to remember that changes in the verbiage of laws leave a lot of open space for the engineering of the machines and code as well as a lot of loopholes and the insurers find them quickly, especially if it means profit with an interpretation and some algorithms that are not deemed illegal. We don’t know exactly anymore because a lot of algorithms with proprietary code seem to have become the law. I just wonder when all of this will sink in to the heads of our lawmakers as they don’t have the control they used to when things were not this complex.

Do you remember all the changes last year with Healthcare.Gov? Every time verbiage changed, the algorithms and formulas that consumers deal with, which end up being policies, websites, claims, you name it change. There’s always going to be some of this but we are at the point to where we need to focus on “less” data and analytics to function, otherwise it’s going to blow up one day. Even the insurers are driving themselves off a cliff with all their data which amounts to more expense and no improvement in care. Yes we do need measurements and accountability but how hard do you want make it? Rich now with Meaningful Use and CMS reporting, it’s ending up cheaper to opt out and not have to deal with the mess. Doctors are doing this and I’m sure there’s some hospitals that might be in there as well. Poor hospitals can’t afford all of the IT needed for reporting and go broke and close their doors. Some hospitals close for other reasons but most are going broke.

Then we have these folks who are going to rule on all these complexities who are not well known for their technology skills and knowledge at the Supreme court that could hand down a decision that could just wreak havoc for consumers, again with the IT infrastructures that run the Affordable Care Act.

So what’s going to be? Complexities mean money for insurers and they love it as they have spent the last few years hiring armies of quants to dissect each part of their business for maximum profits with math models. Hospitals are now hiring quants to keep up and not lose all their money but they have one hand tied behind their back though as they have us, patients to take care of in the money and math modeling battle. It’s the Battle of the Quants that used to be just for markets, but it’s here now and care is not getting any better for patients and neither is engagement. This has built a wall. Democrats are giving up on Obamacare as nobody can stand it anymore as the Quants have maximized the variables and segmentation methodologies where it’s too hard for us humans to work with it. Big data has it’s place in healthcare in genomics and drug research, not making life miserable for people needing care, which is what has been built.

So again do our lawmakers even have one single clue as to the complexities involved here and do they still thing making laws with just verbiage is going to be the answer without some better modeling on their part? I don’t think so as we still the juvenile things like the Ted Cruz coloring book and the other nonsense and we have to read about it over and over as the media is on a big hunt for click bait so they can generate enough ad revenue to stay in business.

I have just never seen anything like this to where nobody wants to lend and effort. We do need to reduce the software and analytics we use today and thin it out or it’s going to fail as everything will come to a halt. We don’t have enough room or time for all the software out there and we are getting spread too thin and need more to be on the same path. We can do this and not stop innovation, and we just won’t have as much “junk” out there making noise.

In addition we have this, the data selling epidemic in the US that needs to be addressed soon. Everyone ignores it but why do you think we don’t’ do much as a nation anymore? Everyone’s taking the easy route and become a data mining shop and this accelerates inequality too.

If you have less “junk” out there, that’s less data to become flawed. So again, wake up and realize the Affordable Care Act is in fact run by the machines and we need much better efforts here with some digital centric laws as the system we are using now will continue to discriminate against consumers as the secret scoring of America continues. BD

Dark Arts of Mathemical Deception

Professor Charlie Siefe of NYU, a mathematician debunks clinical trials, and few other items to where data is spun and fools you, every day example, hear about the perfect butt algorithm and more. These are probably some things you have never thought about but again after listening to what he has to say, it’s time to think about being skeptical. Here’s a radio show that also talks about the same topics.

This video digs in a bit further with how fictitious business models are used by banks and companies do this too. The models are so complex that CEOs don’t even understand them. “Quants, The Alchemists of Wall Street will take you through how “math models” work at banks and financial institutions in a way that even the layman can understand. More videos like over at theAlgo Duping/Killer Algorithm Page. Bank of America will also tell you“IT’ is a business” how they make money.

Weapons of Math Destruction

This is a lecture where Kathy O’Neill, a former Quant who worked for a Hedge Fund (Weapons of Math Destruction) on Wall Street will tell you what is done with your retirement money and more. The banks and companies use technology to take advantage because they can. “Of course we are going to take advantage because our tools are our brains…if they could figure out a way to take advantage of pension funds they would, a good interview with explaining smart money and dumb money.

Algorithms Shape The World

This is a very good presentation done a TED Conference and really was the one that got everyone started thinking about algorithms and today it’s talked about a lot. As he says “if you’re an algorithm, life is looking pretty good, but can’t say the same for humans”. What is a black box? Nobody has any control over the flash crash. We have moved forward a bit but still we are writing the unreadable and lost the sense of some of what is happening. Nice plug for Nanex here with research.